WASHINGTON — Prince George’s County Council has approved a measure that endorses an $850,000 loan from the Maryland Department of Commerce as part of an incentives package that will keep a Safeway distribution center in the county.
The vote was only administrative. State law required the county’s endorsement of the loan, approved by the state earlier this year.
The County Council had also previously approved an Economic Development Incentive Fund loan of $500,000 from Prince George’s County for the Safeway project.
Safeway will invest $14.5 million to expand and renovate the distribution center, retain its 625 employees and create an additional 15 jobs over three years.
In January, Safeway agreed to take over operations of the distribution center, ending its contract with C&S Wholesale Grocers, which had been operating the facility and planning to move its operations to Pennsylvania.
“While we certainly celebrate the Safeway distribution center development project and what it means for jobs and revenue in the county, the Council remains keenly aware of the waning presence of Safeway retail stores and the company’s disappearing footprint leading to food deserts in our established communities,” said Derrick Davis, Prince George’s County Council chair.
Safeway will work with the county to meet a 20 percent local, small and minority-owned business goal as part of the project’s construction phase.
